Taming of the Shrew Comes to Valley

Loudoun Valley High School drama department is pleased to announce the advent of a new performance of ‘Taming of the Shrew’ by William Shakespeare. The production will be performed at Loudoun Valley High School auditorium on December 9 and at 7:00 p.m. and December 11 at 2:00 pm. The cost is $5.00 per ticket, $10.00 for all others and may be purchased at the performance. The play is under the direction of Mr. Ike Stoneberger. … Continue Reading

Barns and Farms of Loudoun County Artist Reception Loudoun County’s Countryside

The tenth annual Barns and Farms Show has a new dimension this year. Loudoun’s sister-county, Main Taunus Kreis (MTK), near Frankfort, Germany on the Rhine River, has invited the Franklin Park Arts Center to coordinate an exhibition of artwork depicting our agricultural region, to be displayed in their government center gallery in the spring of 2012. The artwork to be sent to the exhibition will be chosen from the pieces submitted to the Barns and Farms show. Loudoun has an enormous amount of local talent and the Arts Center is excited for the opportunity to showcase this talent internationally. … Continue Reading

Loudoun Sketch Club Exhibits Artwork

Original Paintings on Display November 11 – December 13

The sixth annual Loudoun Sketch Club art show and sale opens November 11 at the Hillsborough Winery and includes a wide variety of original work – paintings, drawings and photographs – by dozens of Loudoun artists, both established and emerging. The exhibit, juried by artist/instructor Dean Taylor Drewyer, is on display through December 13.

Come meet and talk with the artists during an Opening Reception on November 13 from 2:00 – 5:00 p.m. Light refreshments and Hillsborough wines will be served. … Continue Reading

Franklin Park Big Band To Perform at Franklin Park Arts Center

Community Swing Band Returns For Two More Concerts

Western Loudoun’s newest community based musical ensemble, The Franklin Park Big Band, will provide two performances at Franklin Park Arts Center on Saturday, November 12 at 8:00 p.m., and Sunday, November 13 at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are $5 per person or $10 per family and will be available at the door. Tickets can be reserved by calling the box office at 540-338-7973. … Continue Reading

Two New Exhibits Open October 14

Edith and Harold Symes and Avis Fleming Will Exhibit Artwork

ArtSquare – the center of Loudoun’s visual arts – opens Friday, October 14 with two new exhibits by local artists. The public is invited to meet the artists at the Opening Reception on Friday, October 14 from 5:30 – 8:00 p.m. at 12 Cardinal Park Drive SE in Leesburg. The artists will also talk about their work on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. in the ArtSquare galleries.

Wanderlust Two – paintings by Edith and Harold Symes – will be on display in gallery one.

Graduates of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where they met in 1954, artists Edith and Harold Symes were married a year later and soon after pursued distinguished teaching careers in the Arlington County Public Schools. … Continue Reading

Bryant Park Comes to the Plains

The Windy Hill Foundation today announced its 10th annual benefit fashion show. The show will take place at 11:30 a.m., on Thursday, October 6, at Hillmount in The Plains. The Windy Hill Foundation is a non-profit affordable housing organization located in Middleburg, Virginia and the fashion show is its largest annual fundraiser.

Clothes for the show will come from some of Middleburg, Virginia’s top retailers—Betsey, Duchessa, Highcliffe Clothiers, Lou Lou, Lou Lou Too, The Magic Wardrobe, Timmie Jane, and Tully Rector. And Wendy Pepper, famous Project Runway designer and owner of Wendy Pepper Designs, will show some of her latest creations. … Continue Reading

Tom Principato Band Heats Up The Franklin Park Arts Center

One of DC’s most talented blues guitarists, Tom Principato, will headline an evening of music at Franklin Park Arts Center on Saturday, October 1st at 8:00 pm. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for students and seniors ages and may be purchased online at www.franklinparkartscenter.org.

Tom Principato has spent the last 40+ years as a guitarist and singer based in his hometown of Washington, D.C. In the 1970′s, Tom was leader of the legendary band Powerhouse who released an album “Night Life” to critical acclaim. Tom also did a one year stint with Geoff Muldaur and recorded an album “I Ain’t Drunk” (Hannibal/Island Records 1980) with the band Geoff Muldaur and His Bad Feet members of which included Andy Stein (Asleep At The Wheel), Mark Kazanoff (Earl King) and Sarah Brown (Lou Ann Barton). … Continue Reading

Loudoun Symphony Launches 21st Season with October 8 Concert

The Loudoun Symphony, opens their 2011-2012 Concert Season at 7:30 p.m. on October 8 at the Virginia Academy – Community Church at 19790 Ashburn Road in Ashburn. Opening Night at the Symphony will be directed by Mark Allen McCoy, Music Director and Conductor and will feature Phil Munds, Principal Horn at the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. The concert includes Rossini’s William Tell Overture, Strauss’ Horn Concerto No. 1 in E-Flat Major, op. 11, Milhaund’s, Le Boeuf sur le Toit, op.58 and Hindermith’s Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber. … Continue Reading

News from the Loudoun School of Ballet

The Loudoun School of Ballet (LSB) announces Danielle Sirinsky as the new Assistant Director of their preschool department. Using the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) curriculum, the LSB program includes a host of varied dance styles for every young performer. Imagine a world where creativity, expression and musicality abound through creative dance, ballet, jazz, tap, yoga and musical theatre. There’s even a class that instructs in ballet using storytelling. A range of activities, sounds and musical styles are used to develop children’s physical skills and stamina while having fun. Students exhibit their dance knowledge through recital performances in January and June. Morning or afternoon, weekday or Saturday, the LSB preschool program has something that will fit every young dancer’s interests. Whether you are interested in something for the entire year, or simply a 16-week session of classes, LSB can meet your preschooler’s needs. … Continue Reading

Tom Principato Band Plays Franklin Park

The Tom Principato Ban featuring Tom Principato (guitar/vocals), Steve Wolf (bass), Josh Howell – (congas/percussion/vocals), Joe Wells (drums) will be appearing on Saturday, October 1 at 8:00 p.m. at the Franklin Park Arts Center.

“During the past 40 years, the Washington, D.C.-based guitar virtuoso has fashioned a solid band and solo career…earning a reputation as a player’s player (and a record-label founder). Here, he calls upon some of those fellow pros — slide genius Sonny Landreth, keyboardists Chuck Leavell and Brian Auger, bassist Willie Weeks of Eric Clapton’s band and soul-horn vet Wayne Jackson among them — to flesh out eight original tunes that embrace roadhouse blues, New Orleans funk and soul. Principato’s vocal style is similar to Clapton’s and wears easily on the laid-back material. But it’s the guitar-led burners such as ‘Don’t Wanna Do It’ and the soulful ‘Part of Me’ that warrant repeat listens. ” (Jerry Shriver/USA TODAY)

“ELEMENTS” on Exhibit at Franklin Park Art Center

Artists paint the Classical Elements of Earth, Wind, Fire and Water

The galleries at ArtSquare will present “Elements” – an exhibit of paintings on display at Franklin Park October 3 through November 12. In this special exhibit, Loudoun’s leading artists pay tribute to the classical elements of earth, wind, fire and water with paintings that depict their visions of the essential elements of life. … Continue Reading

Loudoun Artists Document the Land

Special Display at Thomas Balch Library September 1 -30.

Records of the Land by Loudoun Artists is on exhibit at The Thomas Balch Library in Leesburg during the month of September. This special display presents a strong visual statement that art is an important means for documenting the land, as lasting and as powerful as written records.

“Artists have been painting the landscape since the earliest of times,” commented Gale Waldron. “It’s a subject that many artists relate to, not only in terms of capturing the beauty of the land but also with regard to the impact that human beings have on the land.”

The display was organized by ArtSquare – the center of Loudoun’s visual arts. Featured artists include Mary Champion, Lavonne Donohue, Dean Drewyer, Robbyn Holmes, Linda Hendrickson, Katherine Riedel and Dana Thompson. For information about the artists and their artwork, please contact ArtSquare at 703-777-5498 or www.loudounartsquare.org.

The Jewels of Casco Bay

By Sue Thompson

When the heat and humidity of Northern Virginia summers begins to wilt body, mind and spirit, a visit to the islands of Casco Bay can revive even the droopiest among us. Like jewels scattered on the water, the islands dot the coastline of the southern portion of the state of Maine. A rugged and rocky world, possessing great appeal and boasting a rich history, these tiny islands promise a wealth of memorable experiences for the growing numbers of visitors who flock to their shores. The slow pace of island life offers charm, peace and tranquility.

Visitors to Southern Casco Bay will find a cluster of nine tiny islands that have managed to adapt to change while retaining their traditional island lifestyle. Several of the smaller islands have few if any roads, no stores and no accommodations for visitors. Access is by boat only. On any given day rugged yellow and white ferries ply the waters of the Bay from dawn to well past dusk, providing transportation to and from work and school and bringing goods and mail, with scheduled stops at each island. Locals tend to leave their cars at home or on the mainland, preferring instead to travel by foot or bike on the ferry. … Continue Reading

Loudoun Lyric Opera Receives Grant

By Molly Pinson Simoneau

The Loudoun Lyric Opera Company recently received a $5000 Tier 1 Project Grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts. This grant is awarded to new and emerging arts organizations. In a political climate where arts funding is at great risk, a grant like this one can mean life or death to a fledgling company like LLO, which was founded in 2007. “Without start-up funding from VCA, Loudoun Lyric Opera would never have made it to our fifth season this year, ” says Pamela Butler, President of the opera company. … Continue Reading